A common problem that public
relations people need to address is the failure of
companies to live up to expectations on a project or
initiative. In a recent article in the Harvard
Business Review, “Delusions of Success,” authors Dan
Lovallo and Daniel Kahneman discussed how optimism can
undermine executives’ decisions. What can a PR firm do
to proactively defuse a situation before it explodes?

Examples abound of major
initiatives that just didn’t pan out. During the
planning process, executives tend to emphasize the
benefits and minimize the risks. Whether to further a
political agenda, satisfy shareholders or soothe egos,
this tendency can place the company in jeopardy when
initiatives do not proceed as planned.

One reason why executives
tend to emphasize the positives is that everyone tends
to exaggerate his or her own skills. While we are quick
to take credit for business successes, we tend to blame
outside circumstances for failures and missteps.

The authors make a
distinction between the inside view and the outside view
of any situation. The inside view comes from the
executives and project managers, and can be overly
optimistic due to organizational pressures, the desire
to minimize competitive challenges, or simple cognitive
biases.

An outside view, on the
other hand, tends to be more objective and rational. The
traditional approach to major initiatives is to adopt
the inside view. After all, who knows their business
more than the people who run it?

This is where objective
outside opinions expressed by PR firms can be very
helpful. By framing it in the context of future media
placements, PR pros can help mold and craft the
announcements of new projects or initiatives in ways
that bring a touch of reality and objectivity to what
could otherwise result in overly rosy projected
outcomes.

The next time you are
looking to announce a major new project, gain the
advantage of some outside opinions. Use these to form
messaging that can include the upside while providing
some breathing room for future announcements regarding
future activities and achievements. You will be ahead in
the long run.